T.E. Lawrence called it the "the most wholly admirable castle in the world", David Attenborough wandered through it expounding with his customary enthusiasm and british-ness on the virtues of it's defenses - and now it's my turn (who knows, if I do it well enough, maybe I'll be offered a knighthood too??)
The Krak des Cheveliers was the largest of the Crusader fortresses, manned in it's heyday by up to 2000 Knights Hospitaller (still about and led by what other than a Grand Master Friar) and never breached by hostile means. Now, it is the most amazing place to get lost in. Armed with a torch and an uncontrollable desire to see every nook and cranny (born I'm sure from my fascination with Lego castles as a pup), I spent hours exploring this incredible relic of medieval European conquest.
From the huge stables built into the outer walls to the massive keep, from dank and dungeon-like underground passages to Turkish baths (a later addition), the Krak is an astounding feat of engineering, executed by an expeditionary force effectively a world away from the homes they had left. This was an integral part of the kingdom carved out of the holy land by the invaders, and built on a scale I've seen nowhere else - driven by necessity for sustained periods of isolation from aid while surrounded by hostile armies and nations.
All in all, just the thing to keep a boy out of trouble for half a day!
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